Port Angeles City Council

The Port Angeles City Council met Monday evening following a closed session on collective bargaining that began at 5:30 p.m. The regular meeting addressed several significant policy and administrative matters, with the most contentious being a resolution to allocate 12% of lodging tax revenues (approximately $134,000) for City staff administration and oversight costs. The lodging tax issue dominated discussion, with Council ultimately approving the staff recommendation 5-2 despite vocal public opposition. Multiple speakers criticized the proposal as circumventing the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) and questioned whether the administrative costs were justified. Staff defended the request by demonstrating increased workload, with the number of contracts managed growing from 31 in 2025 to potentially 50 in 2026, and total funds administered reaching over $2.1 million. Council also received a presentation from Feiro Marine Life Center Executive Director Melissa Williams on the Marine Discovery Center project, which has raised over $24 million and will break ground ceremonially on April 8th. The new facility will triple educational capacity and expand from 1,200 to 8,000 square feet of exhibits. The meeting addressed several committee assignments and postponed discussion of the Aligned Response and Care (ARC) team until April 7th, citing pending state legislation that could impact the City's options regarding camping and encampments. Council authorized $75,000 for criminal justice consulting services and appointed Mayor Dexter to represent the City in contract negotiations with Clallam County. Additional routine business included a consent agenda totaling over $3.6 million in expenditures and a three-year lease extension with the Port of Port Angeles for Parks Department operations at $85,712 annually. #